20 Vintage Photos Of Marilyn Monroe before she was famous

She always looked like an angel

Marilyn Monroe, the quintessential blonde bombshell, was one the biggest stars of her era and continues to be a towering pop culture icon today.

We have seen many photographs of her when she was famous But what about when she wasn’t a star? I believe we all would love to see how she looked like before becoming a star. Therefore a collection of vintage photos has surfaced and we couldn’t take our eyes off of them.

The future American actress Marilyn Monroe smiling as a 10-months old baby (April 1927)

An adolescent Norma Jeane Mortenson staying at her Aunt Ana’s place. Aunt Ana’s was one of the many homes she would live in through her difficult childhood as an orphan (1938)

Norma Jeane Mortenson at 14 years old. After her Aunt Ana got sick, Norma Jeane had to move in with the Goddard family. She had lived there before, but left their home when she was 11 when her legal guardian, Erwin Goddard, molested her (1940)

Norma Jeane Dougherty, Bridal Portrait, Age 16 (1942)

Newlywed Norma Jeane Dougherty goes out for Chinese food with her family (1942)

Norma Jeane Mortenson with her husband, James Dougherty. When the pair met, he was her neighbor and five years her senior. The two had little in common. She would later say that they hardly spoke because “we had nothing to say.” (1943)

James Dougherty, now a Merchant Marine, poses with his wife outside of boot camp. After he joined the Merchant Marines, the couple became increasingly distant. In 1944, he would be sent off to the Pacific. From then on, they would rarely see one another (1943)

Skiing down a sand dune at a photoshoot (1945)

Posing during a Blue Book modeling shoot (1945)

Norma Jeane Dougherty gets intimately close to another model to film an ad for hair products. James Dougherty strongly disapproved of his wife’s new career. Less than a year after this photo was taken, their marriage would fall apart and the pair would get divorced (1945)

Norma Joane wearing a white bathing suit by a swimming pool (1946)

Sitting on a towel, hugging her knees (1946)

Norma Jeane posing in Malibu. Her lover and photographer behind the photo said “She was twenty and had never experienced the intoxication of success, yet already there was a shadow over her radiance, in her laughter” (1946)